The Saudi challenge
It is difficult for any political system in the world to bear continued great losses. About seven months back, Saudi Arabia was shocked by the death of Crown Prince Sultan bin Abdul Aziz. Today, the Kingdom is shocked again by the death of Crown Prince Naif bin Abdul Aziz. The country lost two of its great leaders within a short span of time, but the political system stood firm because it has been built on institutions, not individuals. The leadership is capable and experienced. Since its third establishment about 80 years ago, the Kingdom has been capable of overcoming its obstacles within the framework of a social contract that ensures unity, stability and cohesion among the members of its society.
Prince Naif was responsible for an important institution. He was the minister of interior and had other great responsibilities. He was in charge of crisis management at a time when the Kingdom was facing a number of difficulties. He not only came out triumphant, but also achieved success on every front. The latest battle he fought was the war against terrorism. Al-Qaeda launched bloody attacks in various parts of the Kingdom including Riyadh, Jeddah, Makkah, Alkhobar, Qassim and Yanbu. Some countries thought the Kingdom would be affected by terrorism, so they shut down their embassies. Some foreign communities who were living and working in the Kingdom opted to leave. Some airlines suspended their flights to and from the Kingdom. Some international newspapers went as far as to say that the Kingdom would not win its war against Al-Qaeda, and if it did, it would suffer impacts. Al-Qaeda attacked Prince Naif’s office in the ministry. The group tried to kill his son Prince Muhammad in his home. It injured some of the security leaders, but eventually failed in achieving its objectives.
Prince Naif waged the battle on various security, political and social fronts. His plan was to contain terrorism nationally, ethically and religiously. He strengthened the government with the support of ordinary citizens. He was able to annihilate the active and dormant cells of the international terror organization. He succeeded where others had failed. His war against terrorism became the war of the citizen against the members of Al-Qaeda and its ideology. He overwhelmed the leaders and members of Al-Qaeda after it had failed to win over the ordinary Saudi citizen by its slogans, allegations, fatwas and propaganda. Prince Naif wanted every citizen to be aware he was defending his country, not the political system. He had realized very early that the terrorists were attempting to recruit individuals from each tribe and every region to weaken the social cohesion. He was able to turn the table on them. The people they targeted within the tribes and in the regions turned against them. The terrorists who had survived escaped to the mountains of Yemen, Afghanistan and Iran.
We cannot limit Prince Naif's role as a fighter of terrorism, although it represented one of his most spectacular achievements and was part of the history of his long service.
Much has been said about Prince Naif, but little is known about him because of the nature of his work and because he himself did not talk much about it. As a journalist, I have known him to be one of the most outspoken officials. Whenever I asked him about any issue, he would give me all its details — not necessarily for publishing, but clarity and openness was his style.
During the 1980s, I visited him when confrontations were at their peak against the Iranians, who were sent to destabilize the Kingdom by creating chaos during the Haj season. The Iranian planes flew over the Kingdom’s territorial waters. Thousands of revolutionary guards who were well trained in combat role arrived in the Kingdom posing as pilgrims. They launched a massive anti-Kingdom campaign. They even killed Saudi policemen outside the Grand Mosque. I asked him about a one-line news story carried by the Saudi Press Agency, which said some Iranians had attacked Al-Baqi cemetery, where many of the Prophet’s companions were buried. I told Prince Naif that this might be their way of worshiping, which did not necessarily mean that they were savaging the tombs or deliberately creating chaos.
He did not tell me what had actually happened, but showed the photographs picturing the incident. They were painful scenes and at times shameful. He told me that the security forces were determined to end the incidents without creating conflicts between the pilgrims and visitors from the Sunni and Shiite sects. He told me that the Iranians wanted to ignite fighting in the lands of Madinah, as they had tried to wage battles near the Holy Haram in Makkah before. Prince Naif told me clearly that he would have crushed them, but he did not want matters to worsen or to give Iran the pretext to create bigger trouble on the Saudi territories.
I am not talking here about the nature of the challenges that we have been facing since 1979 until the present day. Rather, I want to speak about the nature of the system of rule in the Kingdom, which is subtle, firm and capable of absorbing shocks, healing wounds and continuing its upward journey. The regime could have settled all his issues by sheer force, but it always prefers to deal with its issues with wisdom, patience and tolerance. What has always made the Saudi rule distinctive is the wisdom and modus operandi of its leaders. The experiences have taught us that the Saudi royal family is capable of adapting and continuing, despite the loss of a great man who had great influence on the lives of the Saudis.
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